Downtown-centric nightlife group Rockit Ranch's latest addition is a neighborhood tavern in Bridgeport inspired by chef Kevin Hickey's personal history.
Review: The Duck Inn
2701 S. Eleanor St. 312-724-8811
Rating: !!! (out of 4) Off to a good start
After nearly two decades of working with a luxe hotel group like Four Seasons, it seemed like a random move when chef Kevin Hickey announced he was opening a neighborhood joint in Bridgeport. But really, he was just going back to his roots. Hickey's family has lived in Bridgeport for generations, when longtime tavern Gem Bar went up for sale a couple of years ago, he and his wife took out a second mortgage on their home and bought it with hopes of turning it into a restaurant of his own.
Meanwhile, Billy Dec of Rockit Ranch Productions-the local group behind River North hangouts Rockit, Sunda, The Underground, Ay Chiwowa, plus Wrigleyville's Rockit Burger bar-approached Hickey about working on a restaurant together, and Bottlefork was born. Shortly after, he became food and beverage director of Rockit Ranch Productions and it was only natural to bring the forthcoming Duck Inn into the fold, he said. And so, that's the story of how a downtown-centric group ends up opening a hangout on a mostly residential strip of Bridgeport-a wild card in an otherwise consistent poker hand.
Bridgeport's biggest cheerleader
Hickey will have none of your Bridgeport-is-inconvenient-to-get-to whining. "It's closer to downtown than Logan [Square] or Wicker Park. It's an $8 Uber X ride from the Loop," said Hickey, who is very clearly ready for a renaissance in the neighborhood where he was raised and now lives. Growing up, Hickey said he remembers Archer Avenue between Halsted Street and Ashland Avenue filled with family businesses.
"By the mid- to late '90s, everything was closed," he said. "Business is starting to trickle back into that area. It's primed and ready, and geographically, it's so perfect." He rattled off transportation options with the enthusiasm and smoothness of a sales pitch: two Orange Line stops on one side of Bridgeport and two Red Line stops on the other, the No. 62-Archer bus running into the Loop, nearby expressways and other dining and drinking destinations scattered nearby or on the way. "Nightwood is 10 blocks away. ... [You've] gotta pass The Duck Inn on your way to Lagunitas [in Douglas Park]. Moody Tongue, you can practically walk there."
That said, steps from the Loomis Street bridge over the Chicago River, The Duck Inn still feels out of the way. My Uber driver called me assuming my location pin-drop was a mistake, but that might not be the case in a few months once The Duck Inn becomes more common knowledge.
Let's do the time warp again
Under one name or another, Gem Bar had been in operation for an estimated 100 years, but Hickey didn't want to go pre-Prohibition with The Duck Inn. Instead, he split the difference between its birth and today, and committed to a mid-century modern look. A short walk past the bar decorated with Sputnik lamps and a vintage record player brought me to the dining room, where I was greeted by my server, looking all Taylor Swift with a blonde side braid and halo of curly wisps sticking out from under a slouchy knit cap. For first courses, she guided me to the apples and celery ($12), Hickey's spin on a waldorf salad featuring chopped apples and celery root, celery puree and grape granita. It's not at all salad-like, but still felt like a good way to get some fruits and veggies in the mix before indulging in the rich risotto with spot prawns and uni butter ($16). Like most chefs taking a seasonal approach these days, Hickey switches things up often; for example, the waldorf salad has since been replaced by a sunchoke dish, and the risotto may occasionally showcase salty prawns from a fellow South Side business, sustainable food biz incubator The Plant, depending on availability.
Getting their ducks in a row
After my date and I ordered the rotisserie duck for two ($58), our server informed us that we had snagged the very last one. Considering the preparation involved-a brine injection, overnight dry and two-hour turn on the rotisserie-it's somewhat of a science to have enough ducks ready at any given time. Hickey said staff has started asking diners if they plan to order the duck when calling to confirm their upcoming reservation; the answer to whether you want it or not is yes. Hickey rotisserie roasts the whole bird, except for the breast, which he pan-sears instead. That's a clutch move, resulting in juicy, medium-rare meat with crinkly, crispy skin. Hickey said he plans to change the accompaniments seasonally; when I dined, it was fingerling potatoes (cooked beneath the rotisserie duck to soak up the drippings) and a salad of greens with slivers of orange and radish.
Though the rotisserie duck may be what Hickey becomes known for here, it's not what the restaurant is named for. That distinction goes to the original Duck Inn, a bus-stop diner Hickey's great grandmother ran in the '30s. The bar menu features a few dishes inspired by the diner's menu, including the duck and foie gras tamale ($14) and duck-fat hot dog ($10). I'll definitely be back to try the latter (available in the dining room, too, upon request), considering one of Hickey's signatures at Allium was a $14 Chicago-style hot dog with an elaborate presentation of housemade toppings.
Drink your dessert
I was pretty full after all that duck, but when T-Swift so sweetly brought the dessert menu, I caved and ordered the sticky toffee pudding and chocolate doughnut with peanut butter ice cream. Both were fairly forgettable compared with the dessert drink I ordered, a flip (a shaken cocktail made with a whole egg) that tastes like minty, boozy eggnog and is called You Serious Clark ($10). The fact that it's named for a crazy cousin Eddie quote from "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" somehow makes it even better.
The other two cocktails I tried were charmingly presented. The Duck Out ($14), a duck fat-infused cognac-based concoction, was served in a large snifter garnished with a piece of candied citrus peel shaped like a duck. It was too sweet for me, but could be a good gateway drink for an entry-level cognac drinker. I ended up enviously stealing sips of my date's Sloe(er) Gin(ier) Fizz ($10), an amped-up version of the classic sloe gin fizz made with Plymouth sloe gin and Beefeater gin, served in a tall retro-printed glass with a thick crown of egg white foam.
Bottom line: The Duck Inn has the soul of an indie neighborhood joint with the polish of a big-deal backer-a direct result of the Hickey-Rockit Ranch collab. The jury is still out on Bridgeport becoming the city's next dining destination, but I'll definitely be back to The Duck Inn, whether for drinks and a hot dog at the bar (a fine stop on the way to Maria's for DJ sets) or to check out the backyard patio and vegetable garden come summer.
RedEye reporters visit restaurants unannounced and meals are paid for by RedEye.
lmarnett@redeyechicago.com | @redeyeeatdrink